A Lost Swan
by takealeapoffaith
Summary: AU. Emma Nolan, Princess of the White Kingdom, is taken by Pan's shadow to Neverland. Days, months, possibly years go by until she finally gives up her hope, joining Pan's Lost Boys and forgetting all that she had lost. Until one day when she comes across a pirate with a hook for a hand, but little did she know that he might just be the key to everything.


**I don't own OUAT or the characters.**

_so here were are, a new one - just so you all know this is based from an idea I had when doing a CS hiatus meme on tumblr; if you're interested go to my tumblr and take a look: url ~ hissaviour-herhome_

* * *

It was a warm night in the White Kingdom and Emma Nolan leant on the railings of her balcony as she watched the stars. Her eyes shone and she smiled at the sight of the sky above her, full of stars. She'd always loved stars, ever since she was a little baby, she loved the idea that they could light up the darkest times and she always thought that in some way, they always showed you _home_. But today, Emma wasn't looking for home, she didn't need to. Emma Nolan was the princess of the White Kingdom, her parents, Snow White and Prince Charming loved her dearly and she loved them. She grew up perfecting her skills in swordplay, archery, horse riding and learnt how to rule the kingdom and get ready for royal balls.

But although she loved having this life, what girl wouldn't want to be a princess? She always wanted more, something different, Emma Nolan wanted adventure, her body ached for it. But being the princess, meant she couldn't just go wandering off on her own adventures, not anymore, not when her 25th birthday looms. She knew what was going to happen next, she had put it off as long as she could and as long as her parents allowed her too, stating she wasn't ready yet but that time was over. When her 25th birthday hits, her parents will start to find suitors for her, princes from other kingdoms. And that was something Emma dreaded more than anything, she didn't want to be pushed into marriage, she wanted to _find _it herself, she wanted it to be an _adventure_, a journey, not just a 'business transaction'.

Emma sighed heavily as her eyes lingered on one star in particular; she'd never seen that star before. It had four points around it and it pulsed, as though it was a heart. Not only that but it was larger than the rest and there was no way you couldn't miss it because it shined brighter than the rest, it was a pure white light. Emma found herself wishing on that star, wishing that she wouldn't have to get married, wishing that she could have her own adventures, and she wished that she could find her own true love; ever since she was a child, she always wanted what her parents had, she wanted that kind of happiness and she wanted to share it with someone special.

Then in a heartbeat, Emma found herself being pushed back against the wall when a strong wave of wind hit her. Instinctively she scrunched her eyes shut to prepare for the pain as she crashed against the brick wall. It was only when she heard a low, dark voice that she opened her eyes, "Princess Emma." She gasped loudly, her green eyes wide in shock when she saw who, or rather what the voice belonged to, a shadow. The shadow of a man, or boy, well that's what Emma assumed. He was floating just over the edge of the balcony, her eyes couldn't look away from the shadow's glowing eyes, all she could do was stutter, "H-How do you know who I am?"

The shadow chuckled darkly, "I know many things."

Emma frowned, damn him for being so cryptic, how was she supposed to worm her way out of this if he didn't give her anything to work with. Even so, Emma tried to ease her way out, "If you know who I am, then you know you shouldn't do anything to me."

Another chuckle, "Yes, but why should that stop me? I don't belong to this realm, and so no one can follow me after I've left."

Emma started to back away, back into her room, but the shadow just followed her, floating inside at a steady pace, "we've been waiting for this day."

"We?"

"Yes, _we. _You see Princess, we couldn't come to get you until you wished upon a star, _my _star in particular. I'm only able to leave there when somebody wishes me out. And you… you did just that."

Emma stuttered, "What do you mean, 'come to get me'? And I _never _wished for you."

The shadow chuckled again, darker this time, "Oh but you did, you need only _wish _upon my star. You want adventure don't you? So why don't you come with me?"

Emma shook her head, "I do, but not with you." She was only inches away from her bedroom door, when the shadow flew at her, grabbing her upper arm and yanking her towards him. Emma struggled to get out of his grip, but it was no use, so she screamed, "LET GO OF ME! PLEASE LEAVE ME ALONE!"

The shadow ignored her pleas and continued pulling her towards the balcony, Emma could only drag her feet but she knew she was only delaying the inevitable, "LET ME GO!" Emma yelled again, still trying to free herself. Tears pierced her eyes as she was pulled out onto the balcony, it was then that she heard her door crash open and instantly her head spun round. It was her parents, they looked at her in horror as they moved towards her, but Emma was already standing on the balcony railings, "Mum! Dad!"

"Emma!" Snow yelled, rushing forwards, her father following close behind, "Pan! Let my daughter go!" he yelled angrily.

The shadow chuckled once more, "He told you we'd be back for her. Peter Pan _always _wins." And with that the shadow flew off the balcony, holding on to a struggling Emma. Emma could only look down as her parents leant over the railings, as if trying to reach her in some way, tears fell from her eyes and her parents eyes. They yelled after her, "Emma, we will find you! We'll always find you!" her father shouted. The last thing Emma saw was her father pulling her mother against him in a crashing hug as they looked after her, crying.

* * *

At first Emma tried to struggle, then she looked down as the shadow flew higher up and gulped hard. She knew it wouldn't do her any good now, if she fell, she would die, it was as simple as that. And so for the rest of the journey Emma resisted the urge to struggle from the shadow's tight grip. Her tears had now dried due to the cold wind that kept hitting her face, her cheeks were now bright pink and tear stained. When Emma finally looked up, she noticed the stars in the sky. If the situation was different she would've taken time to stare at them, marvel at their beauty. But instead, her eyes clasped onto _that_ star, the brightest and biggest one of them all. She gulped again as the shadow flew faster and faster towards the star, Emma spoke in a quivered voice, "Where are you taking me?"

The shadow chuckled, "Second star to the right and straight on til morning."

Emma rose an eyebrow, what on Earth was the shadow talking about? What did that even mean? Emma pondered for a moment, well the 'second star to the right' obviously meant the star they were heading to but why? It's not like that could travel by stars… right? Emma was from the Enchanted Forest, she was of course used to magic, she knew what it could do, she had seen it herself. She was shown it by Regina when she was younger, after her mother had finally let Regina use it again after her previous 'revenge driven almost-curse'. Emma liked Regina, although she could understand how people were still afraid of her, the stories she'd heard of her days as The Evil Queen were definitely nothing to laugh at. But now she had changed and for the better, and Emma knew part of that was to do with her finding her second chance: Robin Hood and his son Roland. Emma sighed, see? That was just _another _example of finding your own true love. And there was nothing Emma wanted more than that. Well she was being taken somewhere that she didn't know, at least she wouldn't have to go through with a ridiculous marriage any time soon – if the situation wasn't so dire, she would've laughed.

She squinted her eyes harder as they flew straight into the star, all Emma could see around her was a pure white light. And then suddenly there was only a black sky that greeted her. Emma's eyes looked down and her mouth opened slightly when she saw a small island in the middle of an ocean. The island was covered with jungle and surrounded by the darkest waters. This place didn't look welcoming at all.

Within seconds the shadow had descended towards the centre of the island, Emma watched as the island came closer and closer. Her eyes spotted a fire, a camp fire perhaps? And a group of boys dancing around it, saying she was confused was an understatement. A few moments later the shadow slowed down close to the ground, dropping Emma onto it with a loud thud.

Emma winched slightly as she stood up and readjusted herself. A boys voice made her look up, and Emma was definitely confused now. Before her stood a short boy, with short sandy coloured hair and a grin plastered on his face. His clothes were all dark green and his eyes were definitely full of mischief. Emma rose her eyebrow as the boy addressed the shadow, "Thank you for bringing her to me."

The shadow merely bowed and flew off into the darkness, Emma watched as it left and then her attention was back on the mysterious young boy in front of her, he really didn't look any older than sixteen and that made Emma even more confused. She rose her eyebrow, "Who are you?"

The boy took a step toward her, smirking, "Oh I'm Peter, Peter Pan." He replied, sticking his hand out to her.

Emma only looked at the hand, refusing his offer and he spoke again, "It's not very polite to refuse a handshake you know Emma."

Emma took a step back, her eyes flicking around the rest of the area, she noticed around ten other boys too, all looked to be between ten and fifteen years old. There's was something dark in this Peter Pan, she could sense it and she _definitely _didn't want to be anywhere near this place, "How do you know my name?"

"We've had our eye on you for quite some time Emma." He said as Emma kept watching the boys surrounding her as they inched closer towards her. She gulped, "Why?"

Peter Pan took another step towards Emma as he leaned in slightly, "Well you see, I need revenge on your parents and what better way than to take their daughter?"

Emma shook her head, as she kept retreating, her back hitting a few branches now. She peered over her shoulder and then looked back at the boys and Peter Pan. And just like that she spun around and ran into the jungle, never stopping, never slowing down until she was sure she was safe.

A blonde haired boy walked up to Pan and asked, "Want us to bring her back to you Pan?"

Pan only shook his head smiling, "No need, she'll be back again."

Emma ran and ran, until she couldn't run anymore and she looked around frantically, looking to see if anybody had followed her. Thankfully no one had, she was safe… for now. She took a few deep breaths, and waited until her breathing had evened before walking around. She walked slowly, occasionally startled by the sound of leaves rustling behind her. Emma walked for what felt like hours before she came to a small cave. Tired, Emma decided it would be good to rest for a while and besides no one would look for her in a small cave like this, right? So she entered through the small gap and what surprised her most was the size of the inside, it was huge, big enough for her to actually live in. Her eyes scanned around the walls, she couldn't see that well due to the darkness that surround the whole island, but right now she didn't need light, she needed sleep. So she curled up against one side of the cave and closed her eyes. As she drifted off to sleep, she decided she would work out how to get home tomorrow.

The next morning Emma awoke, or could she even say morning? It was still dark outside, the sky was still black, was there ever any light on this island? Emma yawned and stretched as her eyes landed on one of the torches that lay dormant on the floor, maybe somebody had been here before her? She forgot that thought as she picked it up and started looking on the floor again, she'd need something to light a fire with. Thankfully beside where the torch had been was something to light the fire, a flint and a small piece of metal. Somebody was definitely here before her, but hopefully they weren't still living here.

Emma lit the torch, lighting up the cave with a warm glow. Her eyes scanned around the walls, somebody _had _lived here, there were plenty of things thrown discarded all over the floor and the walls were covered in drawings. Emma advanced towards the far wall and studied the drawings, her hand came up as she traced the lines with her fingers. There were a collection of drawings, from animals, ships and even a compass showing port and starboard. Emma's eyes then flicked towards a collection of lines, she traced each one individually and her eyebrows knotted together in thought. It looked like somebody was counting.

"But counting what?" Emma mumbled to herself.

Giving up on the thought she discarded the rest of the drawings when she heard her stomach grumble. She frowned, she needed food. She blew out the fire on the torch and gingerly exited the cave, ready to search for any food that this god forsaken island offered.

* * *

Emma couldn't tell how long it had been since she had been kidnapped and brought to this island. It felt like years, and to be honest being here she learnt the curse of the island, times moves differently. In other words, it doesn't move _at all._ For all Emma knew she could have only been here for days or weeks, but it could also easily have been months or years since she had first arrived. Her tired eyes looked up at the sky again, like they did so many times before. Each time expecting to see a glimpse of star, anything but as always the sky was as black as the day she arrived. No stars, no rain, no wind, she hated it. Not being able to see the stars always broke Emma a little bit more each time, she felt like her hopes and dreams had been torn away from her, her freedom, her parents, her home, love. She could feel it growing weaker every day, the memories she once had were full of happiness, comfort, love but now they were slowly diminishing one by one. Emma vaguely wondered if this was another curse of this damned island, a tear escaped her eye as she thought of her first proper winter, the one when they all played in the snow together. She smiled slightly as the memory replayed itself in her head.

_A four year old Emma giggled loudly as she threw another snowball towards her father, who only laughed back and started to chase her. Emma's green eyes were full of delight when he father finally caught her, lifting her up high and throwing her into the air. Her mother's laugh echoed in the air, which prompted a small Emma to yell, "Mummy! Come and play!" she grinned. _

_Snow smiled warmly and started running towards Emma laughing. David put her on the ground and Emma ran towards her mother, still giggling as Snow knelt down and hugged her daughter tightly. _

_Emma turned around to say something to her father, but he had disappeared. Emma panicked, looking around, "Daddy?" Then Emma felt the warmth from around her leave, her head turned back to look at where her mother _should _have been but she wasn't. She had disappeared too. Emma ran around yelling for her parents, tears falling freely. Then it stopped snowing and the snow melted away leaving a small Emma stranded in a place she now knew: the island._

More tears fell from Emma's eyes as she could feel the happy memories drain from her, she fell back against the cave wall feeling defeated. She'd never get back home. Her hope had gone. Her body felt weak and limp and her eyes were heavy. She blinked a few more times and then her hand came up to feel the tears that had fallen. Her eyebrows knotted together in confusion, why was she crying? What made her cry? Still confused, she stood up and left the cave, what was she doing in that cave?

Emma walked through the jungle, towards the place where Pan camped with his group of boys, why had she left that place again? Why did she run? Emma couldn't quite remember. So she continued walking towards that place until she eventually saw the flames of the campfire. She walked into the camp, and was greeted by Pan, "Well Emma, back so soon?"

Emma looked confused, "What?"

Pan smiled, "Are you here to join me?"

Emma nodded slowly, somehow she felt empty like something was missing. What was that again?

Taking a step towards Emma, Pan offered her his hand and Emma took it, shaking it slowly as he smiled at her, "Welcome to Neverland, Emma."

Emma took a step towards the fire, staring into the dancing flames, feeling the sense of dread and loss drain away from her until she looked up to the sight of the boys dancing around the fire, singing loudly. Emma looked at Pan, who nodded as Emma began to dance around the flames too.

That day, Emma Nolan had lost everything she held dear. She lost her memories, her parents, her life as a princess, her love and her home. And worst of all, because of Neverland, she forgot everything and anything that ever mattered to her. She had nothing. The only thing she had of her own was her given name: Emma.

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_Yay! So here it is, the first chapter of my new fic: __A Lost Swan__ – I hope you enjoyed it and you keep reading it into the future! I'd appreciate any feedback you guys have :D And don't worry I'm still focused primarily on my other CS fic: The Thief and the Pirate. So because of that, this story will most likely be updated slower than TTATP ~ since I really want to focus and finish that before properly delving into this world! ~ Thanks for reading lovelies!_


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